PhD Opportunities:
Plasma Physics and Fusion
Howard Wilson
York Plasma Institute
PhD Open Day 18/11/2015
Outline
• Research strands and people
• Our Science and research facilities
 Low temperature plasmas - technological and biomedical applications
 Fusion energy
 Laser plasmas and high energy density physics
• Collaborative PhD programmes
York Plasma Institute
PhD Open Day 18/11/2015
Academic Staff
and research strands
Greg
Tallents
(EUV lasers)
John Pasley
(fast ignition,
fusion
neutronics)
Chris Murphy
(QED
plasmas)
Chris Ridgers (high
irradiance laserplasmas)
Nigel
Woolsey
(laboratory
Astro, fast
Ignition …)
Timo
Gans
(LTP for
advanced
manufacturing, fusion
Howard
Wilson (theory
plasma
Instabilities)
Bruce Lipshultz
(exp Tokamak
exhaust physics)
James Dedrick
(LTP for space
propulsion)
Deborah
O’Connell
Erik Wagenaars
(LTP for
(LTP for thin films,
biomedical apps)
manufacturing)
York Plasma Institute
Andy Higginbotham (HEDP,
High pressure physics
David Dickinson
Theory plasma
turbulence
PhD Open Day 18/11/2015
Kieran
Gibson
(Exp tokamak
physics and
diagnostics)
Roddy Vann
(theory fast
particles and
microwave
imaging
Ben Dudson
(simulation
of ELMs and
turbulence)
Istvan Cziegler
(expt tokamak
physics and
diagnostics)
Low temperature plasma
research areas
Intel plasma
etcher at YPI Labs
York Plasma Institute
Atmospheric plasma for
biomedical research at YPI
Plasma thruster developed by our
collaborators at ANU, Canberra
PhD Open Day 18/11/2015
Low temperature plasma research
Facilities
Short pulse, tunable laser at YPI
provides information about
plasma content
York Plasma Institute
PhD Open Day 18/11/2015
Low temperature plasma research
International collaborations
York Plasma Institute
PhD Open Day 18/11/2015
Roadmap to Fusion Power
PhD
Postdoc
Career
MFE
Relevant to
MFE & IFE
IFE
[RCUK Energy Programme report "A 20-year vision for the UK contribution to fusion as an energy source" (2010)
http://www.epsrc.ac.uk/SiteCollectionDocuments/press-release-documents/20-yearvision.pdf]
York Plasma Institute
PhD Open Day 18/11/2015
MCF: Experiments on international facilities,
MAST & JET tokamaks as well as theYork Linear Plasma Device
In support of ITER test reactor and
the demonstration fusion plant
(Demo)
York Plasma Institute
PhD Open Day 18/11/2015
The MCF Plasma Science Issues:
Through a MAST Discharge
York Plasma Institute
PhD Open Day 18/11/2015
Tokamak research areas:
From the hot core to the cool edge
Magnetic confinement research areas
working from the hot core to the
surrounding walls
Vacuum
vessel wall
• Core plasma (107 – 108 K)
• studies of instabilities that keep the
plasma from getting as hot as needed
Vacuum
Core
• Boundary plasma (106 – 107 K)
• studies of the physics to make as
Boundary
layer
thermally insulating layer as possible
SOL
• Divertor plasma & target plate
• Studies of techniques for dissipating
the fusion energy exhaust and
minimising impurities due to plasmasurface interactions
York Plasma Institute
PhD Open Day 18/11/2015
Separatrix
X-point
Divertor leg
Divertor
target plates
Private flux
Laser-Plasma Interaction Science
QED plasmas
Fusion energy:
- Fast ignition at CLF
- Shock ignition
- Understanding NIF
- Neutronics
Hollow
Atoms
>> high
Radiation
Lab astrophysics and field
planetary physics
Advanced
manufacturing
processes
Induction coil
Blab ~ 30 G
Blab
tlab
10 mm
Laser drive
Shock wave
Nature (2012)
York Plasma Institute
PhD Open Day 18/11/2015
Nature (20
International facilities (eg NIF), national
(eg Orion, CLF) and local laser facilities
York Plasma Institute
PhD Open Day 18/11/2015
High performance computing and
data analysis cuts across all our plasma research
The ARCHER national
supercomputer is a valuable asset
Remote control room allows direct
access to data and control of
diagnostics at remote facilities
York Plasma Institute
PhD Open Day 18/11/2015
Collaborative
PhD Programmes
York Plasma Institute
PhD Open Day 18/11/2015
Low temperature plasma research
York-Paris Collaborative Research Centre
York Plasma Institute
PhD Open Day 18/11/2015
Fusion Centre for Doctoral Training
• A collaboration between five universities and three government research labs
 £8.7M programme to train 77 PhD students over 5 cohorts
• The Universities involved are
– University of Durham: advanced instrumentation; superconducting strand
– University of Liverpool: low temperature plasmas
– University of Manchester: materials, nuclear physics and activation
– University of Oxford: materials
– University of York (lead): magnetic and inertial confinement fusion;
technological/medical plasmas; nuclear physics
• The Government research labs involved are
– Culham Centre for Fusion Energy
– Central Laser Facility, Rutherford Appleton Lab
– AWE
– National Nuclear Lab
• …and international labs
– ITER, NIF, F4E
York Plasma Institute
PhD Open Day 18/11/2015
Fusion Centre for Doctoral Training
Activities
• A four-year PhD programme
• Initial team building event
• Outreach events
• Six months of taught courses (from materials
to plasma science; from computer simulations to
hands-on plasma/materials experiments)
• “Collaboratory” mini-project: £3k research
project in second year and £3k international
placement
• Annual workshop with world-leading speakers
York Plasma Institute
PhD Open Day 18/11/2015
Contacts for more details
Greg
Tallents
(EUV lasers)
John Pasley
(fast ignition,
fusion
neutronics)
Chris Murphy
(QED
plasmas)
Chris Ridgers (high
irradiance laserplasmas)
Nigel
Woolsey
(laboratory
Astro, fast
Ignition …)
Timo
Gans
(LTP for
advanced
manufacturing, fusion
Howard
Wilson (theory
plasma
Instabilities)
Bruce Lipshultz
(exp Tokamak
exhaust Physics)
James Dedrick
(LTP for space
propulsion)
Deborah
O’Connell
Erik Wagenaars
(LTP for
(LTP for thin films,
biomedical apps)
manufacturing)
York Plasma Institute
Andy Higginbotham (HEDP,
High pressure physics
David Dickinson
Theory plasma
turbulence
PhD Open Day 18/11/2015
Kieran
Gibson
(Exp tokamak
physics and
diagnostics)
Roddy Vann
(theory fast
particles and
microwave
imaging
Ben Dudson
(simulation
of ELMs and
turbulence)
Istvan Cziegler
(expt tokamak
physics and
diagnostics)